This amendment forbids further federal expenditures for the Central Subway project in San Francisco.

The project is a 1.7 mile subway that is estimated to cost $1.6 billion –– and those cost estimates continue to rise. Its baseline budget has more than doubled in nine years and shows no signs of slowing. The current estimate brings the cost to nearly $1 billion per mile. That’s five times the cost per lane mile of Boston’s scandalous “Big Dig.”

It was supposed to link local light rail and bus lines with CalTrain and Bay Area Rapid Transit, but it’s so badly designed that it bypasses 25 of the 30 light rail and bus lines that it crosses. To add insult to insanity, it dismantles the seamless light-rail to BART connection currently available to passengers at Market Street, requiring them instead to walk nearly a quarter mile to make the new connection. Experts estimate it will cost commuters between five and ten minutes of additional commuting time on every segment of the route.

This administration is attempting to put federal taxpayers – our constituents — on the hook for nearly a billion dollars of the cost of this folly through the “New Starts” program – or more than 60 percent. We have already squandered $123 million on it. This amendment forbids another dime of our constituents’ money being wasted on this boondoggle.

Now here is an important question that members may wish to ponder: “Why should your constituents pay nearly a billion dollars for a purely local transportation project in San Francisco that is opposed by a broad, bi-partisan coalition of San Franciscans, including the Sierra Club, Save Muni (a grassroots organization of Muni Riders), the Coalition of San Francisco Neighborhoods, and three of the four local newspapers serving San Francisco?

Why, indeed.

I’m sorry, I don’t have a good answer to that question. But those who vote against this amendment had better have one when their constituents ask, “What in the world were you thinking?”

# # #

This amendment to the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act (HR 5972) was approved by the House on June 29th. The legislation next goes to the Senate.

The powerful San Francisco Democratic County Central Committee is, once again, having elections come November. You’ll be confronted, once again, with a ballot that’s filled with a bunch of names, most of which you’ve never heard of, and the obligation to check off your dozen favorites.

If you want, you can head over to the intersection of Market and Octavia this Saturday, April 3, 2010 and then head into the the LGBT Center‘s Ceremonial Room from Noon to 5:00 PM. Then you’ll be able to see and hear some of the candidates for DCCC in 2010 address members of the Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club.

They’ll all be answering a few questions from the crowd. (I don’t know if you need to be a member of the club to drop by, but you should be able to join the club, of course, if you want.)

The 12th District (Assemblywoman Fiona Ma country) reps the west side and 13th District (Assemblymember Tom Ammiano country) reps the east side of town, mas o menos. Find your district and see if any of these folks will be one of your twelve favorites:

And, oh yes, Alex Volberding would like everyone to know that he too is running for the DCCC in the 12th. But the two lists above aren’t exhaustive, they just show who plans on showing up at the next Milk Club PAC meeting. (The entire exhausting list of candidates for S.F. has 51(!) names this go-around.)

Warm words came from fellow Supervisors, such as Chris Daly (talking positively of “creative tension”), but also Gerry Crawley, Robert Haaland, and “Parrot Guy” Mark Bitterman. Not so warm words came from public commenter the “I am Jesus” guy (“that was two minutes?” A.P.: “It felt like four.” [laughter]) and others, serving to support Jake’s words that, “Democracy is lugubrious.”

Aaron Peskin wielding this particular hammer for the last time. Click to expand.